Jail Time

Last night I dreamed I was in jail. As the dream evolved I realized I was the one who had actually built the jail and even chosen my jailers. Amusingly, I could leave my cell everyday for lunch and then return again later.

When I awoke this morning I wondered...is this what I do in my life...create my own jails and hire my own jailers? I would have to say...yes, I do. I construct my cell of daily pressures, disappointments and annoyances then choose my jailers from those I perceive expect too much, cause me stress or let me down. I lock myself up.

Yet, I have the key to my freedom, right in my pocket. After all, in my dream, I opened the door and took a break for lunch! Just before I woke up, the jail vanished and I expanded to fill its space, all beauty and light. Lying in bed, I set an intention to bring more freedom into the day. So despite all of the twists and turns in my imperfect day, I opened several jail doors and fired a few jailers and came through the day happier and very grateful for my freedom!

New Moon Meditation

The Moon is in the darkest part of her cycle today, the New Moon, when the light dies away and we linger and await its renewal. During this time, from the depths of the darkness our deepest emotions can swim to the surface. We all know the dark emotions of fear, anger and grief and can recognize their effects in our everyday lives. On an energetic level, these emotions can short-circuit our loving nature. They can muddy our relationships, cloud our judgment and even clog our organs and cells.

In the darkness of the new moon, take a few moments in meditation to sit quietly with your emotions. Pick one…fear, anger or grief. Acknowledge the thoughts or the story that is attached to that feeling. Then let it go and sit with just the emotion. Don’t resist it. In fact, acknowledge it, give it the respect it deserves! Just let it become detached from you. Be an observer of it. You may discover that the emotion does not seem so dark and troubling. In fact, as the light of the moon returns you may step into that light and find it shining through to your more truly creative and joyful nature.

Freedom through Forgiveness

Like everything else in life freedom is not an endpoint; it's a process, a journey into deeper self-awareness. It is the process of letting go of old issues and the fear, anger and grief that give those issues life.

I was witness to just such an event a few days ago. A 30 yr.old young man was telling his parents how much he resented the way they handled his teenage years. He was not looking to revisit those teenage arguments and they did not judge or justify their actions. They listened with love and compassion. The energy that bound them to those difficult times was being released. No one resisted and no one hung on to the fear, anger and grief that lived and breathed during that time in their lives. They began to forgive one another, a journey called Freedom.